Policies and Procedures

In order to comply with institutional, Board of Regents, and State of Georgia policies, Albany State University has instituted a number of procurement control procedures that allow for effective and efficient procurement of goods and services while at the same time maintaining prudent safeguards to ensure that all required policies and procedures have been followed.  Below are some of the most common policies and procedures that affect purchasing at ASU, but it is important to know that this is not an exhaustive list, and the campus community should reach out to ASU Purchasing for guidance on all purchases.

The full Purchase Request, Purchase Order, and Purchase Authority policies can be found HERE

Albany State University carries the following delegated purchasing authorities from the requisite granting agencies.  Purchases greater than this amount will require a request for a waiver to the delegated authority of the institution and as such, additional time will be required:

DOAS (General Goods and Services):

  • Requests for Quotes - Unlimited
  • Requests for Proposals - $1,000,000
  • Sole Source Postings - $500,000
  • Consortia Postings - $500,000

Board of Regents (Construction/Public Works) - Level One Authority

  • Project Authorization (Construction Costs NTE) - $50,000
  • Design Professional & IDIQ Contracting (QBS) - $75,000
  • Construction Professional and Task Order Contracting - $500,000

Purchase Orders

ALL purchases of goods and services at ASU are required to have a purchase order, regardless of dollar amount unless allowable under the Payment Request Policy (see below).  In addition to this, State Accounting Office policy requires that a valid purchase order be issued BEFORE goods and services are received or delivered.  Campus users MAY NOT take delivery of goods or have services performed without a purchase order having been issued and signed by an ASU Procurement Official. 

Purchasing understands that certain goods/services such as membership fees, accreditation fees, conference registrations, etc. may only be processed by invoice and not quotes.  These types of purchases will be reviewed and approved on a case-by-case basis.

Users should have requisitions / requests for purchase orders through approvals and in the procurement office at least two weeks before the needed date of the PO.  This is considered the minimum lead time required and it should be noted many procurement activities will require a longer lead time.  Purchase orders should at a minimum include a quote from the vendor outlining the goods/services ASU is to receive.  Additional documentation may be required based on the type of purchase.

In addition to these requirements, campus users should be aware of the following thresholds for the procurement of goods and services:

Purchase Type Purchase Amount
 Bid or Public Posting Required Posting Time
 Notice of Intent to Award
Open Market $0 - $24,999.99 No N/A Not Required
Open Market $25,000 - $99,999.99 Yes Three (3) Business Days Not Required
Open Market $100,000 - $249,999.99 Yes Five (5) Business Days Required - Five (5) Calendar Days
Open Market $250,000+ Yes Fifteen (15) Calendar Days Required - Ten (10) Calendar Days
Sole Source / Consortia Contract $25,000 - $249,999.99 Yes Five (5) Business Days Posting Period Serves as the NOIA
Sole Source / Consortia Contract $250,000+ Yes Fifteen (15) Calendar Days Posting Period Serves as the NOIA
Sole Source / Consortia Contract $500,000 Yes along with DOAS Pre-Approval Fifteen (15) Calendar Days Posting Period Serves as the NOIA
Public Works / Construction $0 - $49,999.99 No N/A N/A
Public Works / Construction $50,000 - $99,999.99 Informal Bid Required N/A N/A
Public Works / Construction $100,000 - $249,999.99 Yes Fifteen (15) Calendar Days N/A
Public Works / Construction $250,000+

Yes

 Thirty (30) Calendar Days

N/A

 

Payment Request Policy

There are certain purchases that do not require action by the Procurement Office and as such some of these are delegated to campus units to handle as payment requests. In such cases, departments should obtain the invoice and complete payment by means of a payment request. The purpose of this policy is to enable campus units to appropriately utilize payment requests as an authorized mechanism of purchasing and payment. In general, payment requests should only be used for purchases equal to or less than $2,499.99.  All other purchases unless outlined below should be processed on a purchase order. 

The State Accounting Office (SAO) provides guidance to state entities on when a purchase order is expected in the procurement of goods and services. Except as noted below and when final payment method is not a purchasing card (p-card), a purchase order is required for all purchases or obligations to purchase goods and services greater than $2500.

The following are allowable via payment request, regardless of dollar value:

      1. Attorney and legal related payments, as such procurements are prescribed to the Department of Law via OCGA §45-15-34;
      2. Benefit payments made directly to recipients;
      3. Intergovernmental agreements/payments (e.g. GTA bills, Risk Management premiums, HRA assessments, etc.)
      4. Memberships dues and/or subscriptions (Examples include: library subscriptions, internet database subscriptions, magazine subscriptions, newsletter subscriptions, newspaper subscriptions, professional document and publication subscriptions (Legal, Medical, etc.), or professional journal subscriptions.).
      5. Payroll and associated tax and benefit payments
      6. Postage and shipping (including customs and freight charges from brokers, freight forwarders, and carrier)
      7. Real estate rental/lease payments
      8. Registration fees
      9. Sales and Use tax payments
      10. Travel expense reimbursements for non-employees (Employee travel expense reimbursements are handled via expense report process in the GeorgiaFirst Financial System)
      11. Utilities (e.g., electricity, telephone land lines, cell phone charges, etc.)
      12. WEX and ARI payments

The following items/services may not be purchased using payment request regardless of dollar value:

  1. Software
  2. Hazardous materials
  3. Trackable chemicals
  4. Firearms
  5. Vehicles licensed for road use
  6. Purchases that require (1) regular interaction with students, employees, minors, and/or (2) regular access to facilities, monies, sensitive/confidential information. (Note: Departments may request Procurement to grant an exception to this policy if the supplier will not accept a purchase order. The supplier will need to confirm compliance with background check requirements for their employees in order for an exception to be granted.)

Payment request may be used for all other goods and services but are limited to a total cost not to exceed $2,500:

  1. Please note: If the goods or services are available on a mandatory statewide contract, the purchase must be from a supplier on the statewide contract and for goods/services offered under the contract. An index of statewide contracts is available on Team Georgia Marketplace. Use tgmguest as both the user name and password. Then use the search functionality to search for the category of products, etc. Search results will show if the contract is mandatory or convenience. The Procurement Office may pursue a waiver from State Purchasing on your behalf. Please reach out to Procurement if you wish to pursue a waiver.


Note: It is expected that all study away programs will operate in accordance with this policy no later than January 1, 2025. For assistance in modifying existing business processes please Academic Affairs.

Unauthorized Purchases

Purchases not adhering to the above-referenced Purchase Order process and are not approved to be placed on an University-issued P-Card may be considered to be in non-compliance with ASU, Board of Regents, and/or State of Georgia policy.  ASU has adopted an unauthorized purchasing policy that outlines the procedures to request approval of unauthorized purchases.  Please note, requesting authorization does not guarantee that an unauthorized purchase will be approved.  Repeated violations of the unauthorized purchase policy may result in employee disciplinary action including loss of purchasing abilities and possible personal liability for purchases not authorized by the institution.

All unauthorized purchase forms should be submitted via the below SmartSheet Link:

Unauthorized Purchase Approval Form Submission Page

If a purchase is believed to be unauthorized (if goods or services have been received or delivered without issuance of a purchase order), users will be required to submit an the Unauthorized Purchase Form.  At a minimum, the form will require a supervisor's signature for purchases under $25,000 and purchases over $25,000 will require the signature of a unit's Vice President.  In addition, the following actions will be taken for users who have repeated violations of the policy

Occurrence Action Required
First Occurrence User is required to complete unauthorized purchase form - signature of supervisor is required; VP signature may be required.
Second Occurrence User is required to complete unauthorized purchase form; Signature of supervisor and unit VP is required.
Third Occurrence User is required to complete unauthorized purchase form and attend mandatory procurement training; Signature of supervisor and unit VP is required.  Employee may be held personally liable for the purchase.
Fourth Occurrence User is required to complete unauthorized purchase form.  Signature of supervisor and VP is required.  User access to ePro is suspended for 30 days.  Employee may be held personally liable for the purchase.

 

The Director of Purchasing, in consultation with ASU Senior Administration, will determine actions for occurrences above and beyond the above outlined scenarios. In addition, flagrant violations of the policy may result in more severe penalties than what is listed above.

Contracting Policy

It is the position of Albany State University that all contracts for the procurement of goods and services should be the result of a compliant procurement process.  As such, all contracts for the procurement of goods and services should start in the purchasing office, and will be routed for additional reviews as needed. As part of this review, Purchasing will determine if the items as outlined in the contract can be procured in a compliant and legal manner, or if additional procurement action is required before entering into an agreement.

Contracts that require review should be submitted at least 45 days in advance of the date of a needed purchase order.

Any contract that requires review should be attached to a requisition in ePro, which will provide both the necessary programming and budgetary approvals. Upon receipt in the Purchasing Office, the Director of Purchasing will review all contracts and will route to the Office of Legal Affairs for a legal and risk compliance review.  In addition to this review, other reviews (such as a security review by ITS) may be required. 

Contracts equal to or exceeding $150,000 are subject to review and approval by the Office of the President. 

The full contracting policy may be found HERE. 

Signature Policy

Only authorized staff may bind Albany State University into a contractual relationship. In general there are two authorized signatories on behalf of Albany State University:

The Director of Purchasing may sign contracts equal to or less than $150,000 along with contract renewals and contracts related to consortia/cooperative purchasing.

The President (or his authorized designee) is the only authorized individual to sign contracts greater than $150,000.

The full signature policy may be found HERE.